Creativity & Mental Health

OVERVIEW

MentalWellCare, a fictional client for this concept project, is launching an innovative program aimed at reducing the costs of mental health care and encouraging members to prioritize their mental well-being. They aspire to transform the way individuals perceive and engage with mental health, placing a strong emphasis on self-discovery for deeper self-understanding. They firmly believe that mental health education is a critical tool in equipping the public with the knowledge to make healthier choices and avoid harmful behaviors.

As part of their pre-incentives program, the client is developing an extensive online library of learning resources, accessible via the patient portal from any device. This library will include a diverse range of resources, including full-length courses, mini courses, and micro-learning options. In the incentives program, patients will be rewarded with reduced care costs as they achieve specific learning and wellness goals. Patients will easily track their progress, communicate with their providers, and select learning content through their patient portal.

In this fictional scenario, this eLearning course is one in a series dedicated to self-care and mental health, with the overarching goal of empowering individuals to take control of their mental well-being.

Audience: MentalWellCare patients

Responsibilities: eLearning Development, Instructional Design, Visual Design, Action Mapping, Storyboarding

Tools Used: Articulate Storyline, Mindmeister, Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint

PROCESS

Action Map

I applied the ADDIE framework to create this mini-course. To begin, I constructed an action map that emphasized the broader perspective, enabling me to analyze potential needs from various angles. To gather the necessary information, I collaborated with subject matter experts in the field of mental health and conducted research from online sources. Additionally, I served as the subject matter expert for segments of the course that focused on creativity, drawing from my background in art and education.

With the client's central goal in mind—empowering patients to proactively manage their mental health and improve their overall well-being—I identified the following steps to achieve this objective:

• Knowledge: Develop an eLearning library of resources to provide patients with new insights and understanding of mental health topics.

• Services: Deliver high-quality counseling and mental health services tailored to various patient needs.

• Incentives: Offer rewards to patients who prioritize their health.

• Opportunities: Create events and activities that promote both mental and physical well-being.

While not all steps toward the client's goal involve eLearning solutions, the design and development of an online resource library for patients clearly required dedicated teams of eLearning professionals to execute. I chose to focus on the topic of creativity and its positive impact on mental health due to my personal interest and passion for these subjects.

This text-based storyboard served as the foundation for the entire project, encompassing content, animation, interaction notes, programming details, and visual assets. My goal for this course was to engage learners with interactive and visually appealing content. The storyboard played a crucial role in streamlining the planning for these interactive elements and guided me in my approach to incorporating Gagne's Nine Events of Instruction within the course.

Visual Mockups

Next, I proceeded to developing the visual elements and slide layout options using Articulate Storyline. Working within Storyline for this phase allowed me to familiarize myself with the design features and content library available, which served as my primary source of visual assets for the course. For each slide, I iterated through multiple background, image, text, and overlay options to achieve the desired appearance. Some of the key visual design considerations during the mockup phase included:

• Images: I opted for photographs rather than illustrated characters to ensure that people in the images appeared realistic and relatable. This choice aimed to help viewers imagine themselves participating in the activities described on the slides. According to Mayer's multimedia design principles, relatable material fosters a stronger connection to the content, leading to a more positive learning experience and increased motivation to learn.

• Creative Activity Slides: For slides focusing on creative activities, I meticulously selected images. Understanding that art and creativity can be sensitive subjects, I aimed to avoid images that might reinforce common concerns or roadblocks people have when it comes to creating art, such as complicated or messy materials, the perception of art needing to be realistic, self-doubt, or inadequate tools and supplies.

• Color: To choose the slide color scheme, I first selected a few key images for the project. I then experimented with various color options to find combinations that best complemented these images. Given my intent to work with transparent colors for a light, weightless appearance, I considered color theory and the effects of color mixing with transparencies and overlays. Additionally, I aimed for a color scheme that maintained a gender-neutral appeal, reflecting the themes of self-care, mental health, and creativity without leaning too masculine or feminine.

• Overall Feel: To align with the course's content, I strived to create slides with a lightweight visual feel. This was achieved through the use of overlays, transparency settings, a simple lettering style, and color choices associated with calmness and positivity.

Interactive Prototype

Once I received feedback on the visual mockups and was happy with the overall appearance of the slides, I advanced to the development of the interactive prototype. The course underwent numerous iterations and feedback cycles on the journey to its final version. The interactive prototype played a pivotal role in this process, enabling me to collect valuable user feedback and then integrate it into the project.

Full Development

After receiving and incorporating feedback from multiple interactive prototype iterations, I continued into the full development of this mini course using Storyline 360. During this phase, I efficiently learned how to use and apply many of the complex functions of Storyline. I also completed numerous rounds of testing to ensure the smooth functioning of all triggers, visuals, buttons, and animations.

One design element that I take pride in is the overall visual mood of the course. My objective was to cultivate a serene and weightless appearance that complements and reinforces the course's content. The pursuit of positive changes to our mental health can improve our lives, lifting burdens of stress and anxiety. To achieve this, I carefully worked with overlays, transparency settings, utilized a light-weight and simple lettering style, and selected colors associated with calmness and positivity. Visual design is a powerful means of communication, and I made each visual element selection thoughtfully to maximize the effectiveness of information conveyed through the course.

Another achievement I'm proud of is the interactivity I incorporated. Many of the slides are designed to enhance learner engagement through various interactive elements, including:

• Click to Reveal Interactions: Learners are encouraged to click on images, markers, and buttons throughout the course to unveil information. This approach empowers learners to actively explore and discover, making the learning experience more engaging.

• Slider Interactions: A slider interaction is integrated into the course, enabling learners to explore different topics on separate slide layers through manipulation.

• Gamification: I introduced a matching game early in the course, which prompts learners to categorize activities into different self-care groups. Gamification is a great way to engage learners and foster an overall positive learning experience. This activity allowed learners to both apply knowledge from the course, as well as recall knowledge from personal experiences.

• Quiz: At the end of the mini-course, I included a brief, graded quiz to assess learners' understanding of the content. Custom feedback is provided for each answer to guide their learning. The final slide displays their quiz score, along with navigation options based on passing or failing scores.

• Audio: As a final touch, I decided to add background audio to set the tone and help maintain learner engagement.

Key Takeaways

Developing this eLearning mini course has been an enjoyable and rewarding experience. I had the opportunity to explore the various features of Articulate Storyline and apply them to my slides, resulting in more engaging content. The positive and constructive feedback I received from others was instrumental in refining the course, and the iterative feedback process was a familiar experience from my graduate training in visual art. I firmly believe in the power of continuous improvement and enjoyed the opportunity to work with constructive feedback throughout this project.

While I had prior knowledge in some subject matter areas due to my training in art and education, there was a significant amount that I needed to learn. I thoroughly enjoyed researching and delving into new topics, as well as consulting with subject matter experts to help guide the design of the course. Breaking down and structuring the information into manageable segments, with the learner's experience in mind, was a rewarding endeavor.

One potential enhancement for this course could be the addition of a printable resource at the end. Upon course completion, learners might have the option to access a PDF document outlining all the creative activity suggestions provided throughout the course. Offering a resource like this would encourage learners to save or print it for future reference, increasing the likelihood that they'll engage in the suggested activities without the need to revisit the course.

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